Seasons

       In New England we have the joy of experiencing four major seasons in the year Spring, Summer, Fall and Winter. If you ask anyone "What is your favorite season?" You will get a million different answers and reasons.  If you were to ask me that question I would answer all of them! Each season has something good and a different beauty.  The beauty we see in spring is the beauty of the new growth. Everything is green and new. Yes there is mud and rain but, that just makes the green standout that much more. Bird song fills the air in the spring, animals everywhere are giving birth and hatching. Summers beauty is that of all the flowers that bloom in the summer. Summer is filled with friends, family and food. The sunsets in the summer are breath taking and the nights star filled.  The beauty of fall is found in the changing of the leaves. From green to red, yellow, and orange the tree line becomes a blaze of color. Apples, pumpkins and corn mazes fill the time and thoughts of all. I have found that the more gray the day the more the colors of the trees pop. Winter, the season everyone picks on, has a beauty that can be found in the fresh coat of snow. Winters beauty is also seen in the icicles that hang off of trees and power lines.
     Often life is said to come in seasons, seasons of singleness, married, loss, and happiness to name a few. Just like the seasons of the year  we tend to value one season of life more then the others. In most churches I have been in being single is looked down upon for a young woman of my age. Much like winter is often disliked by those who live in colder climates.  Over the last few weeks the Sunday school group I am in at church has been studying the about dating and the process that leads to marriage. For the first time in my life I am not ashamed of being single. I can now see that God has a plan and purpose for this season in my life just like the seasons in the weather.  Without springs rains we can not have a bountiful harvest in the summer and fall. Without the cold winter months the ground and plants do not have a time to rest. Without the leaves falling of the trees the winter snow would be to heavy for the limbs of the trees. Without summers heat the crops would not ripen, and we would not enjoy the cool fall weather as much.  God has a plan in every season, and a purpose for every season. The times that are hard or difficult help strengthen us for the next challenge. The times of loss help us to cherish the time we have and those around us. Being single is a time where I can help in a way someone who is married or has kids never can. Being single means that I can be there to help my sister with her kids, or my mom with a project. It means I can drive to Maryland for my best friends wedding with little difficultly. Being single does not mean I am less than, there is no one who is less than in God's kingdom. Being married does not mean you do not have the less freedom then a single person,  it just means your priories and worries are different.  If I were to spend all my time wishing for a different season I would miss the beauty and the lessons of the season I am in. Those who spend all winter wishing for spring or summer miss the beauty of the snow. This also leads them to spend the season miserable. If I spend the season of singleness in my life wishing I am married and put all my happiness in the idea of being married then I will not be happy when that happens to me and I would have missed out on all the opportunities that are before me because I am not married. The bible is full of verses about being content and the effects of discontentment on the body. One that stands out to me is "A sound heart is the life of the flesh: but envy the rottenness of the bones" Proverbs 14:30 (KJV). When all I can focus on is what others have that I don't it is not good for my spiritual or physical health. I have to walk that path that God has set before me and not the path He has planed for anyone else.